The Conservatives are a happy bunch at the moment. But for how much longer? They might be riding on the crest of a wave after the second reading of James Wharton’s Private Member’s Bill for an EU referendum. But already forces are at work to disrupt the happy harmony.
Labour MP Mike Gapes has this week tabled a rather amusing series of amendments to the legislation which are almost certainly an attempt to sow division in the Tory ranks. They call for:
– A referendum on the terms of Britain’s membership of the EU rather than just on whether Britain should be a member.
– A referendum on a date to be determined.
– A referendum on a date to be decided by a Royal Commission on the future of the UK in Europe.
– A referendum on 22 May 2014.
– A referendum on 6 May 2015.
– A referendum before 31 December 2014.
– A referendum before 31 December 2015.
– A referendum before 31 December 2016.
– A referendum before 1 July 2017.
– A referendum before 31 December 2018.
– A referendum before 31 December 2019.
– A referendum on the date of the 2020 general election.
Gapes has also tabled amendments on a Royal Commission on a referendum and on who would be able to vote in this referendum. The intention is clear: this series of different options for the referendum date could cause chaos in Tory ranks because there are factions of MPs who believe there should be a referendum before the next election. Even those who do not might be tempted to vote for the most eurosceptic option of a referendum sooner rather than later in order to avoid that dreaded ‘europhile’ tag.
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